Silence Speaks Louder Than Words
by ariel3837
Summary: Blaine, a mute after a terrible incident, transfers to Dalton Academy. This is his story, and how he learns to trust again.
1. Chapter 1

Blaine and Kurt don't meet the way they do in NBK. Takes place shortly after the Sadie Hawkins dance.

I do not own Glee. If I did every show would be just Klaine.

What I remember from that night wasn't the carefree laughing, the awful music, the spastic dancing, or my first kiss. No. All I remember was the pain, the slurs, the blood, my unconscious date, and the knife.

"Will you be okay, Squirt?" My brother asks for the millionth time since we've arrived at Dalton Academy.

_Will I be okay?_, I think. I honestly don't have an answer. Of course instead of telling him that, I nod.

Cooper sighs, comes towards me and sits next to me on my Dalton-issued bed. He scoots over a couple of boxes in order to fit, and wraps an arm around my shoulders. I lean over to rest my head on his chest, hearing the calming heart beat that I've grown to recognize over the years that I've come home and needed a shoulder to cry on.

"I know you haven't spoken since the incident," I stiffen and he pulls me closer. "But you know I'll always be here for you, when you need someone to listen. I'll text you every night to check in on you, God knows mom and dad won't, but I expect an answer back."

I nod again, knowing it was time to say goodbye. My new roommate should be here soon to show me the "wonders and mysteries that is Dalton", according to the Head Master.

Cooper puts his other arm around, turning it into a hug and presses a kiss to my gelled hair.

"I love you, Blaine." He says, pulling away and standing up.

I stand up as well and place my hand over his heart, which he knows means: _I love you, too._

He smiles and places a kiss on my cheek, before walking out the door, closing it behind him.

Sighing, I turn my back to the entryway, causing me to be slightly uncomfortable, and look around my new room, two beds, two desks, two wardrobes, one bathroom. The dorm is pretty neat apart from a cluster of papers on one of the desks, one of the bed's being messy and unmade, and my bed being full of boxes.

Slowly, I walk towards the closest box and start to take things out, sheet music, my journal, guitar picks, lamp, cords to the unknown, a couple of CD's. I pause when I find a picture of me and Coop at the park before the incident, both of us without a care in the world, the only pain either of us had to deal with was bad grades and rejection form girls (or in my case, boys). I put the picture on my bedside table along with my lamp, my journal in the drawer, and everything else on the desk. Then I start working on my next box which contained a toothbrush, hair gel, more CD's, alarm clock, and a couple of bowties, and I put them away in their respectable places. I go over to my suitcase next, putting my clothes for the weekends away in the wardrobe, ignoring the three uniforms already hanging inside. That's when I hear a soft knock. I turn around to see a brown haired boy standing in the doorway.

He smiles softly at me and makes his way across the room.

"Hello, my name is Nick Duval. You must be Blaine. It's a pleasure to meet you." Nick says smiling, holding out his hand, which I flinch at. He must have noticed, since he lowers it slowly to his jacket clad side, his warm smile only faltering for a second.

The boy is pretty cute, with dark brown hair in his also dark brown eyes, teeth gleaming in the artificial light. He's a little bit taller than me, and buffer as well. His uniform fits him great, hugging him in all the right places. Since I'm a midterm transfer, I don't have the luxury of getting my uniforms fitted, like Nick did. I can only imagine how ridiculous I'll look in the last year hand me downs.

"The Head Master informed me of your problem, as well as all the teachers and staff," my eyes widen. "Don't worry, she didn't tell us why the problem occurred." Nick says, still smiling. "Are you hungry? It's lunch time right now, so we can head down to the cafeteria or the coffee shop if you'd like?"

I just nod, looking down at my shoes, not knowing how to answer.

"Oh! That reminds me!" My roommate exclaims, digging in his bag at his side. He pulls out a leather bound book, along with a pen, and holds it out for me.

I raise my eyebrows in confusion, but take it anyway.

"It's so you can communicate easier with everyone." By the time he says this, he's bouncing up and down on the toes. I open the book, curiously finding some writing on the back side of the cover.

_**To Blaine,**_I read,_**I hope you'll enjoy your time here at Dalton and I'm looking forward to being your roommate for the year. From, Nick.**_

By the time I'm finished reading, I can feel a smile tugging at my lips. I click the pen and write: _**Thank you. **_

I turn the book around for Nick to read. His smile grows wider. He grabs my hand and pulls me out into the hallway, pausing to close the door behind us.

"Come on, I want you to meet some people!"

We eventually arrive at, what appears to be, a cafeteria. There's a bunch of dark, wooden, round tables surrounded by five or six wooden chairs. A crystal chandelier hangs in the middle of the ceiling surrounded by artistic black designs. The walls are painted red and have inspirational quotes and paintings all over them. To one side, there's a salad bar and a coffee shop, the other has a normal lunch line.

Nick tugs me into the direction of the lunch line and we grab some of the so called "food". We pay for our meals and Nick leads me over to a table. On our way there, random boys smile and greet me. As I nod in reply, I can't help but think that maybe everything will be okay here, that people are okay with "different". I know I'm getting my hopes up, so I shake the thoughts out of my head and keep my eyes on the floor.

We finally arrive at a table, and Nick sits down. I stand, unsure if he wants me to sit with him, but when he looks up at me and smiles that warm, welcoming smile, I can't help but sit to his left.

I start picking at my food, which consists of an apple, milk, a piece of pizza, and a cookie, as a couple of guys approach us. I quickly lock my eyes on my food and try to ignore their arrival.

"Hey, Nick." I hear one of them say, followed by chairs scrapping against the tiled floor and trays hitting the table.

"Hey, Jeff. Hey, Wes." Nick replies.

"Who's the new guy?" A new voice asks, probably Wes.

I feel myself shrink in my chair, but I look up in response.

Nick smiles in encouragement.

"Guys, this is my new roommate, Blaine. Blaine, this is Wes," he says pointing to an Asian guy, about a year older with brown eyes, brown hair, and tan skin, "and Jeff." He gestures to a lean, tanish, bleach blonde guy, who looks at me excitedly.

"Hey!" Jeff says, shoving his hand in my face, causing me to shrink back and flinch in reply.

Jeff's smile slips from his face.

"Hey. It's okay. I won't bite." He looks at me with concern. Wes has a look of confusion, and Nick has one of understanding.

Slowly, I raise my hand in a sort of wave and an attempt at a smile.

Jeff perks up at this and his smile returns.

Wes also looks relieved, to get some sort of response, and they both begin to eat.

Nick gives me a thumbs up and takes a bite of his apple.

My smile slowly becomes less forced and more real as Wes and Jeff bicker over who's hotter: Megan fox or Jessica Alba. Every once in a while, Nick would cut in with a comment, but other than that he'd ignore them.

My smile was wiped off my face though, when Jeff asked my opinion.

"Megan Fox is way hotter. What do you think, Blaine?" He asks, turning towards me.

When my name pops up in the conversation, the whole table looks at me.

Under the table, I start playing with my sleeves and I keep my eyes on my lap.

Should I tell them I'm gay? What if they have a problem with me being gay? How am I going to tell them that I can't even _tell_ them that I'm gay?

My inner rambling was cut off by a throat being cleared. I look up to see Nick looking at me with questioning in his eyes.

I nod, knowing it'll be easier if he tells them.

"Um, guys," Nick cleared his throat again and coughs, looking at me out of the side of his eyes. "Blaine, he, uh, he can't really, you know, talk."

I was then met with two looks up surprise and one of sadness.

Nick tries to put a hand on my shoulder, which I move away from. I'm done with other people comforting me. I shift uncomfortably under the intense stares, but it isn't until the next sentence comes out of Wes's mouth, that I really start freaking out.

"Why?"

And with that I leave my untouched lunch at the table, and run out of there, not knowing where I'm going.

I run for what feels like hours. Eventually I end up in a wide room, full of couches, a fireplace, and round tables. A couple of windows are on the far wall, and sadly, it's raining. The dark sky causes the room to be casted into shadows, making it glow, eerily.

How appropriate.

Looking around, I notice a piano in the corner, close to a window. Slowly, I make my way over and sit on the creaky bench.

I run my hands over the creamy ivories, enjoying their cool touch, and I savor the smooth feel of the wood. After taking a deep breath, I press on one, creating a clear sound throughout the empty room.

I haven't played since before the incident. I've only stared at my piano and guitar at home, longing to hear their comforting sound, but feeling no need to play.

Until now.

Closing m eyes, I allow myself to press more keys, my fingers dancing and gliding across the keyboard, the bittersweet song reflecting my inner most feelings, laying them out for anyone to hear.

I've missed this, pouring out my heart in the most expressive way. As the song grows bitterer, I can feel my eyes well up. For the past three months, which included the four weeks in the hospital, the countless therapy sessions, both psychological and physical, the nights when I'd wake in a cold sweat, screaming out in agony for help, the funeral, the locker shoves, dumpster dives, and the few times of being tripped down the stairs that followed the incident, the moving, having my parents ignore me throughout all this, while all this was going on, I never, _never_ let myself cry. That showed weakness, showed that I was, and am, a coward. A coward that ran from my problems, that ran when it got too hard to live in the real world.

For the first time since my life flipped upside down, I started to cry.

I kept playing, my eyes closed, savoring this moment to myself.

That's when I heard a cough.

I looked up to not only see a pair of eyes, but the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen, eyes that I couldn't even decide the color of. Were they green? Blue? Hazel? Grey? All I knew is that they were beautiful.

Those eyes belonged to a boy about my age, with perfect chestnut hair, flawless, pale skin, and a great sense of fashion.

The boy's smiling at me.

That's when I noticed that I've been staring.

I quickly wipe my face clean of tears and stand up from the piano.

The boy moves closer, his uniform stays wrinkle free as he move. He stops when he reaches a couch, and he casually leans against the back, facing me.

"That was beautiful." The boy says.

I feel my face grow hot and I look at my shoes, only nodding in response.

I hear footsteps against the wooden floors and suddenly, another pair of feet joins mine.

"Your very talented." The boy tries again.

I sneak a glance at him, he's still smiling. His eyes are even more beautiful up close. I nod and smile back.

"You seem to live the music, not just play it"

I wanted to say something, not just sit here nodding at everything. That's when I realized I left my writing book in the cafeteria. Hopefully Nick will grab it. I feel a wave of guilt for just leaving them there.

"You don't talk much, do you?" the boy asks, startling me out of my thoughts.

I shake my head.

The boy sighs in reply.

"Are you going to talk at all?" He looks at me confused.

I shake my head again. Confusion turns to concern.

He was about to ask something else when Nick ran into the room, out of breathe, holding my book.

"There you are! We've been looking for you for, like, ever! I see you've met Kurt." Nick smiles and comes over to me. He hands me my book. "Here, you forgot it on the table. Wes and Jeff feel really bad. I tried telling them that you just need time, but they wanted me to let you know that they're sorry."

I feel even guiltier now.

I give Nick a small smile, and he gives me a pat on the back, which I try not to shy away from, in return.

"Hey, Kurt." Nick greets the boy, grinning.

Kurt. Kurt. His name is Kurt. It suits him.

The boy, Kurt, smiles.

"Hey, Nick. I was just talking to him about the weather. It's getting real nasty out there."

I breathe a sigh of relief. I don't want anyone to know about m outlet, my security blanket. It's too personal.

When Nick turns to look out the window, observing the rain, Kurt winks at me. I feel myself blush once again, but I know he understands.

"Yeah, it is getting bad. The Head Master will probably want us in our dorms soon."

"Yeah, I better head that way." Kurt looks over at me. "I'm sorry, but I didn't catch your name." He smiles.

Nick looks over at me and opens his mouth to reply. I hold up a finger, telling him to stop.

I open my book and write down:

_**Blaine Anderson, New student. Transferred today. Nice to meet you.**_

I then hand it to Kurt so he could read it.

Realization shows on his face and he grabs my pen from me, writes something down, then gave it back to me. He then gave a wave, says goodbye to Nick and walks out.

After watching him go, I look down and read:

_**Kurt Hummel, your new friend. **_

I hope you like it! More chapters will be posted later!

Please Review!

Xoxoxo -Ariel


	2. Chapter 2

Once again, I do not own Glee, Blaine, Kurt or any character. : P

"We usually have to be in our dorms by ten and in bed by midnight." Nick explains, as we made our way to our room.

"Classes start at eight, breakfast at seven. Lunch is at noon and classes end at three. I won't be able to meet you after school, because I have Warbler practice at three-fifteen, Monday through Friday and at three on Saturdays, though the Saturday practices aren't mandatory."

I nod, taking in the new information.

"After lunch, you have an hour of study hall; usually I spend it in the commons room. Since you don't start classes until Monday, you can do whatever. Since its Saturday, I'm not doing anything until three. Do you have anything you have to do today?"

I shake my head.

"Would you like to come with me to the Warblers practice? It should only be about twenty minutes wince only a couple of us will be attending. We'll probably just go over our set list and a couple of other things."

The Warblers. That could be fun.

I nod and a smile appears on Nick's face.

"Cool. You already met Wes and Jeff. David is gone for a while, but you can meet Thad and Trent. You'll like them."

I smile, excited to meet new people, but my smile leaves as soon as it appears.

"They won't judge you. I promise." Nick says, putting a hand on my shoulder. "Why don't we watch a movie before we go? Do you like Harry Potter?"

* * *

When we enter the Warbler's Practice room, I realize that this is where I ran to earlier. I quickly find the piano in the corner.

"Hey, Blaine!"

I look away to find Jeff talking to me.

"Do you want to join the Warblers? That would be so cool! Have you met Trent yet? You'll like him. He's really sassy, kind of like Kurt. Oh! Have you met Kurt? He's awesome."

I grin at his enthusiasm. His hyper attitude is kind of contagious.

I take out my book from my shoulder bag and take my pen out of my pocket.

_**Nice to see you again, Jeff. No I haven't met Trent. Would you introduce me to him? Yes, I met Kurt earlier today. He is awesome. No, I'm not joining the Warblers. I don't talk, remember?**_

As Jeff reads over my shoulder, I hear someone say my name. I look around to find Kurt walking towards us, a grin on his face and a skip in his step.

"Hey, Blaine." He says, finally reaching me and Jeff. "Hey, Jeff."

"Hey, Kurt! I heard you met Blaine already. I was just about to introduce him to Trent."

"Oh, Trent is out of town with his parents for the weekend, gone to Wyoming to visit family, or something. He should be back by Monday though."

Jeff's smile fell for a second, but it came back quickly.

"Well, I guess Blaine will just have to meet him then. Blaine isn't joining, by the way. He's just here to make new friends. Right, Blaine?"

I nod, wondering how he could talk so fast.

"Too bad Blaine doesn't play any instruments, and then he could join." Jeff continued, Kurt shot me a look. "It would be so cool, Blaine would be able to hang out with us after school every day, and go to competition. You don't play any instruments, do you Blaine?"

I hesitated. Do I lie and protect my secret, that only Cooper, and now Kurt, knows about, or do I tell them and risk them taunting me, like at my old school?

"_Hey, fairies. Where you running off to? Going to go cry to your mommies?"_

Memories from that night start flooding back to me, causing me to get dizzy, real fast.

"_Come on, we only want to have a little fun."_

I begin to get a headache, and I move to sit down, finding no chairs nearby.

"Hey, Blaine? You okay, man?" I vaguely hear Jeff say through the clouded fog_. _

I shake my head.

"_Why don't you guys try to be normal? That way, we wouldn't have to make you be."_

I feel an arm go around my waist, and soon, I am walking out of the room.

Someone pushes me into a bench that sits in the hallway, and puts a hand on my shoulder.

"Blaine? What's wrong?" Nick says, as I begin to focus once again.

I shake my head, not wanting to tell him.

I hear Nick sigh and he pats my back.

"Well, if you ever want or need to talk, well, I guess write, to someone, you can talk to me." Nick smiles.

He begins to stand up, but I grab his wrist, stopping him. He looks at me confused, and I motion that I need my book, with my hands. He looks more confused for a second, but nods and goes inside the practice rooms.

While he's in there, trying to find my book, and filling everybody in no doubt, I try to collect myself.

After a couple of minutes, Nick comes back out with my book and a shy grin on his face.

"Here you go." He hands me my book and sits down, looking at the floor.

I take my pen back out of my pocket and I write:

_**If I tell you, you have to promise that you won't tell anyone.**_

I bump Nick with my shoulder, nodding towards my book when he looks up.

He reads it and nods, urging me to go on.

I take a deep breath, and slowly begin to write.

_**About four months ago, I decided it was time for me to come out; **_I pause and look up to see Nick's reaction. He has a look of surprise, but he looks at me with a smile, and pulls me into a somewhat awkward hug.

"I won't judge you, I promise. I would be kind of a hypocrite if I did." He laughs.

Now it was my turn to be surprised. I look at him, questioning. He nods, shooting me a grin, and I find myself smiling in return.

_Maybe it won't be bad here after all._

I return my focus to what I was saying, and I continue to write.

_**I came out to my brother first. He accepted me of course. When I told my parents, they acted like they accepted me, but I could tell they really didn't. They started staying away from home longer, making excuses for not coming to my baseball games, or school events. I haven't seen them for three months, it's just been me and Cooper. **_

_**A week or so after my parents found out, a boy at school asked me to the schools Sadie Hawkins Dance. His name was Jason. He was really shy and he was really cute. I, of course, said yes. I spent two hours getting ready. I was so excited for my first date. **_

_**Jason and his dad picked me up and we went to the school. The theme was Under the Stars. The gym was decorated with shiny paper stars hanging from the ceiling, and on the walls, there were planets and clouds, rockets and space ships. **_

_**At first, Jason and I just stood in a corner, drinking punch, talking. As the night went on, Jason got more affectionate. He'd hold my hand, bump my shoulder, and eventually, he asked me to dance.**_

_**He took me over to the dance floor, during a slow song and he held me close. I remember thinking that it was the most magical night of my life. Halfway through the song, Jason put his forehead against mine. He leant further down, to reach me, and that's when I had my first kiss.**_

_**I got tired before the dance was over and we called Jason's dad to pick us back up. Jason got a little overwhelmed by the crowd, so we went outside to wait for our ride. We heard some footsteps following us on our way, but we ignored them. Soon the footsteps had voices to go along with them.**_

_**The voices started calling us names, horrible names. When I turned around, I saw five of the football players following us. Jason noticed that I stopped, and he grabbed my wrist, trying to get me to keep walking, but I didn't. I was too scared. Soon, we were surrounded. Jason pushed me behind him, grasping my hand like a life line.**_

_**One of the guys got toe-to-toe with Jason and spat on his face. Jason was unphased by this, and the guy noticed. He grabbed the back of Jason's head and shoved him to the ground, his head hitting the concrete when he fell, with a gut wrenching thud. He laid there for a while, slowly trying to get up, and I tried to get to him, but one of the other guys, a guy with a hat, grabbed me and dragged me away from my date.**_

_**I couldn't really see what was happening because I was too far away and the other four guys were in my view, but I could hear Jason screaming, and I could see one of the guys kicking him, while another one beat his face. I heard a sickening crunching noise, and I felt the urge to vomit.**_

_**By the time they moved away from Jason, I was sobbing. It took me awhile to realize that the guys were moving away from him and walking towards me. I felt fear rise up in me, and I tried to fight my way out of the hat guy's grasp. He was a lot bigger than me, so it was a lost cause. **_

_**That's when the hitting started. First to my stomach ribs, causing me to double over, gasping for air, and wincing in pain. Soon I became slack and the guy dropped me from his hold, and I fell to the ground. They beat me until I didn't feel it anymore, and blood was everywhere. **_

_**I vaguely saw Jason on the ground to my right, head cracked open, leg bent at a weird angle. When I noticed he wasn't breathing, I saw a knife, and I went black. **_

I look up at Nick, who was reading over my shoulder, to see his shocked expression.

After a moment, he pulls me into a hug, and I feel safe for the first time since the incident.

We pull apart and I realize that I have tears streaming down my face. I quickly wipe them off, and try to compose myself.

"What else happened?" Nick asks, cautiously.

I up to see him looking at me with intense eyes.

I shake my head and write down:

_**All in good time.**_

Nick nods, understanding.

"Want to go back to our room?" He asks, standing up and looking down at me.

I nod and stand with him.

As we make our way over I notice that for once, I don't feel alone.

* * *

The next couple of weeks were fairly uneventful. Started classes, met the rest of the Warblers, tried out for the fencing team. And since I'm a year behind, the homework was easier than expected.

It wasn't until my third weekend at Dalton that I felt at home.

"Hey, Blaine?" Nick asks, as we were finishing up our various school work. He's sitting on his bed, up against the headboard, French book in his lap.

I look over at him and tilt my head to the side, as if to say "yes?"

"I just want to let you know that I know how you feel." He pats his bed, silently telling me to sit by him. Over my few weeks here, Nick and I've grown close. He didn't seem to mind the one sided conversations, the silence, my inability to sleep without a light on. He became my best friend.

I make my way over and plant myself next to him. It isn't until I look at him, that he continues.

"I haven't always gone to Dalton either. I use to live in Arizona, went to a normal school in a small town with my brother. My parents were never home, so we took care of each other. It wasn't until I realized that I was gay that it all fell apart. I immediately told my little brother, Hunter. He accepted me without hesitation. We were always close; us being 2 years apart didn't really help the matter. I told my parents shortly after and they were okay with it as well. I thought everything was great. My family accepted me, I was doing well in school, I was the star of the soccer team. It wasn't until one of my neighbors' son's heard me talking to Hunter about my fascination with a boy at school."

Nick took a breath and started messing with a bracelet on his left wrist.

"He told all his friends and it spread like wild fire. I began to get picked on, name calling, jokes cut in class about me, shoves into lockers. I quit the soccer team, my grades dropped, and hunter got tormented too, though I had yet to realize it at the time. He got the worst of it, locked into rooms for hours; beat up behind the school, threats. I never asked how he was holding up, caught up in my own self pity."

Nick paused, looking up at me, his face wet.

"One night when my parents were on a business trip, I decided to go to the library and try to salvage my grades. That day was really hard for Hunter, and I could tell something was up, but I ignored it, thought he was just being a teenager. He ended up," Nick broke off with a sob. "He l-left me, all alone."

I was speechless. My heart ached for my friend. I pulled him towards me and let him cry into my shoulder, my own tears free falling down my face. We sat there for a long time in silence, just crying and thinking. After a while, Nick moved away from me and sniffed. We wiped our tears away and slowly, Nick spoke again.

"I miss him every day. It feels like a part of me is missing." He explains, as I rub my hand around his back, copying what Cooper does when I need comfort. Slowly, Nick seems to relax more, eventually leaning against my side, head on my shoulder.

"He was so full of energy, like a puppy, or a kid on a playground, kind of like Jeff." He closes his eyes. "Jeff reminds me of him so much it hurts. Maybe that's why I like him so much."

I nod, still rubbing his back. That's when I get an idea. I get up, slowly so Nick wouldn't fall over because of the sudden movement, and go over to my bed. I pull out my guitar case from underneath it, removing the picture taped to the inside of the top.

Quickly, I sit back down next to Nick and hand him the picture. He shoots me a curious glance, but looks at it anyway.

He studies it for a while.

"I don't get it." He finally says.

I reach over and turn the picture around.

On the back, written in my handwriting was:

_**Jason (1994-2009)**_


	3. Chapter 3

_Sorry it's been a while! Finally, Chapter 3 _

_I don't own glee or characters; otherwise Klaine would still be together._

* * *

"Jason?" Nick asked, softly. "As in Sadie Hawkins Jason?"

I nod and look down at my hands, playing with my fingers in my lap. Nick sat there silent for a long time, just observing the picture.

I really haven't thought about Jason, the boy I caught staring at me in the hallways, the boy who freaked out when Timmy Leder found a spider in his desk during biology, the boy who would cut people in line just to make sure he got a cookie before they ran out at lunch, the Jason who snuck notes into my locker or hurried to sit by me in history, that that boy, is gone. _Forever._

I feel a hand take mine and the picture slipping into my other.

"Thank you," Nick says, quietly.

I look up to see sadness mixed with gratefulness in his eyes, tears shining in them and on his cheeks. I smile a little and pull him into another hug. When we pull away, it's a little bit awkward, but neither one of us cares.

"I didn't know you owned a guitar." He looks over to the case, still out from under my bed. "Do you play?"

I hesitantly nod. _I can trust Nick. He's the closest thing I have to a friend._

"Oh, cool! I tried playing, but I could never grasp what to play and the cords." Nick gets up, laughing a little and walks over to the case. "May I?" He asks, looking up at me, questioning.

I give him a thumbs up and I grin when he picks the guitar up gently, and holds it out, looking at it.

"This is a beauty." He grins and walks over to me, still holding the guitar. "How long have you had it?" He asks, setting it in his lap. I hold up six fingers and he raises an eyebrow.

"Days?"

I shake my head.

"Weeks?"

Another shake.

"Months?"

I shake my head again.

"Years?"

I nod.

"Wow, you must take really good care of it."

I have. That guitar is my baby. It's the last birthday present I got from my parents. It means a lot to me.

"Will you play something for me?" Nick looks hopeful and excited, bouncing a little on the bed.

I freeze. I never play for anyone. Not my parents, not for Cooper. I've only played for Jason. He loved to hear me play, hearing the sound of the strings being plucked, the steady cords, the sliding of the notes when I tune. He used to say that when I was playing I'd scrunch up my face a little, and how "adorably dorky" it is. I used to play for hours, and he'd just listen and not say a word. Sometimes I would sing, but most of the time, I didn't. I'd just play whatever I felt like playing, whether it was a top 40s song or a Beatles song. He'd never interrupt me or criticize me.

I jump as a hand rests on mine. I look up at Nick to see him smiling slightly.

"You don't have to."

I breathe a sigh of relief and begin to write a response, but it was interrupted by a knock on the door. Nick gets up to answer it and soon after I hear a "Blaine!"

I move towards the door to see Jeff, Thad, Trent, David, and Wes at the door.

"Would you like to join us for a night out?" Thad asks, casually. "We're just going to go get some pizza and rent some movies. We'd love for you to come." Jeff and David nod in agreement.

I smile slightly and ignore the butterflies in my stomach at the thought of actually hanging out with friends, or having friends to hang out with. I nod and my smile grows as Jeff jumps up and down.

I turn around and walk to my bed to retrieve my book when Trent asks "You play guitar?"

I start to panic inwardly and I can feel a blush coming up my neck. I sheepishly turn around and shrug like it was nothing, then I quickly push past them and walk out the door, looking over my shoulder once to see if Nick was following.

As I walked a head of them I hear them whisper:

"He plays?"

"Why didn't he tell us?"

"Do you think he'll play for us?"

"Did you see his Harry Potter poster on the wall?"

That one makes me grin a little. I can always count on Jeff to not make a huge deal out of things.

* * *

"….then you distribute the x and divide by 34 and then carry the 78. After that you times it by pi and plug it in. Simple as that."

I stare up at Nick in amazement and frustration. Grabbing my math notebook, I stare at it for a while, then grabbing my leather notebook, I write: _Come again? _

Turning it around for Nick to see, I raise my eyebrow as he rolls his eyes.

"Blaine, seriously, it's not as difficult as it looks."

_Whatever you say, genius. Can we please get something to eat now? I'm dying of starvation and I'd rather eat pizza than learn this._

Nick laughs and nods. "Okay, okay. I admit defeat. Let's go eat."

I scramble off of my bed and almost fall on my face when my feet get caught in my blanket. I look up at Nick to see him rolling his eyes once again. He holds out a hand and I take it gratefully and he hauls me up.

"Serves you right. Next time try making your bed." And with that we head out the door.

* * *

We get in line to get some sort of soup they were serving for dinner and pay for our meal.

As we head to the table, I see that Kurt is sitting with some Dalton students from some of my classes. I also notice that one of them has an arm around Kurt's shoulders. Looking at this makes my heart sink.

We reach the table and sit in our usually spots. Shortly after, Jeff, Thad, Trent, and David join us.

"Where's Wes?" Nick asks, raising an eyebrow and taking a sip from his milk carton.

"Oh, he's researching our competition or something." David replies.

"He's probably polishing his gavels." Trent says under his breath and everyone laughs, except me. I'm too busy looking at Kurt's table, wondering what the deal was with him and the other student. This doesn't go unnoticed by Jeff though.

"That's Sebastian Smythe. Lead Warbler, straight A student, star of the lacrosse team, and Kurt's boyfriend. They've been dating for about a year now."

My heartbreak must have been written all over my face, because Nick pats me on the back.

"Fish in the sea, dude. Fish in the sea and that guppy is dating a shark. I would stay away if I were you, that shark has bite."

I roll my eyes and push away my untouched food. Jeff, of course, takes this opportunity to call dibs on pretty much everything on my tray, but Trent shoots me a look of worry.

"Aren't you going to eat? You didn't eat lunch either."

I shake my head, sighed, and made a mental note to text Cooper sometime tonight.

* * *

After what seems like ages, I'm curled up under my comforter.

I reach for my phone and slowly type out the words that I know will cause more fuss than I'm worth, but I send it anyway.

* * *

I wake up to a text from Blaine. When I read it, I have to do a double take. Worry starts building up.

_I must have read it wrong, he got help. He's better. I think, knowing that that's not true, that he'll probably never get better._

**I did it again. **


End file.
